Underfloor boxes

ABSTRACT

An underfloor box made of identical upper and lower sections which abut each other through flanges. The flanges carry fasteners which lock the flanges together and also serve as nuts for leveling lugs. In one particular form, the box is combined with an adapter which conditions the box to accept either small of large size ducts.

United States Patent [191 Hadfield et al.

[ Jan. 8, 1974 UNDERFLOOR BOXES [75] Inventors: Robert W. Hadfield,Belpre, Ohio;

. William H. Harding, Parkersburg,

W. Va.

[73] Assignee: Textron Inc., Providence, R.I.

[22] Filed: May 11, 1971 21 Appl. No.: 142,318

[52] US. Cl 220/33, 52/222, 85/70,

174/48, 174/51, 174/57, 220/392, 220/394 [51] Int. Cl H02g 3/08 [58]Field of Search 220/33, 3.4, 3.94,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,274,785 3/1942 Gray285/399 1,969,043 8/1934 Sharp 3,338,450 8/1967 Rose 174/48 3,365,998l/l968 Zahodiakin 85/70 3,485,933 12/ 1969 Flachbarth 174/57 3,405,83410/ 1968 Butler et al. 22013.94

OTHER PUBLICATIONS Square D Catalogue A.l.A. File No. 31662 Price ListUD 147 Page 13 September 1964.

Primary Examiner-Samuel B. Rothberg Assistant Examiner-Stephen MarcusAtt0rneyFrederick J. Olsson [5 7] ABSTRACT An underfloor box made ofidentical upper and lower sections which abut each other throughflanges. The flanges carry fasteners which lock the flanges together andalso serve as nuts for leveling lugs. In one particular form, the box iscombined with an adapter which conditions the box to accept either smallof large size ducts.

2 Claims, 8 Drawing Figures PAIENTEU JAN 8 4 SHED 1 0F 4 \\H ll'fI/IIl'fll;

INVENTORS. Robert W. Hodfield William H. Hardins FREDERICK J. OLSSONATTORNEY.

PATENTEDJAN 819M sum 2M INVENTORS. Robert W. Hudfield ATTORNEY- WilliomH. HordinG FREDERICK J. OLSSON PAIENTEU 8W SHEET 3 BF 4 INVENTORS.Robert W. Hodfield BY William H. Hordine.

FREDERICK J. OLSSON ATTORNEY.

PAIENTEU 3,784,042

sum u 0F 4 INVENTORS.

Robert W. Hadfield 74 7 7s 77 BY William H.Hordine FREDERICK J. OLSSONATTORNEY.

UNDERFLOOR BOXES This invention relates in general to underfloorelectrical distribution systems. More specifically the invention relatesto improvements in junction and floor boxes for such systems.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide a design applicablefor both floor boxes and junction boxes and which in either formsignificantly reduces material, fabrication and assembly costs in themanufacture of such boxes.

To this end the invention contemplates forming a box by stamping out apair of parts which are identical in shape, modifying one of the partswith threaded holes for grounding screws and also with an access openingfor an access unit, mounting the modified part on top of the other partwith the upper and lower parts being in contact through abutting flangesand securing the parts together with fasteners mounted in the flangesand functioning to lock the flanges together and also serving as nutsfor leveling lugs.

Thus the design provides for a box'made from a basic single stampingwhereby the box per se comprises only one pair of components which areassembled simply by butting the same together and securing in place byfasteners which are quickly mounted by power actuated tools.

Another object of the invention is to provide a design for a two-leveljunction box which permits a wholesale reduction in the number of boxconfigurations necessery to meet the variety of combinations of levels,sizes and positions conventionally found at duct intersections inunderfloor systems.

To this end the invention contemplates the combination of a two-leveljunction box and one or more adapters, the box having top openings fordistribution ducts and lower openings for feeder duets with all theopenings being the same size and each adapted to receive, alternatively,either a larger size duct normally used in feeder and distribution runsor the adapter which con ditions the opening to receive smaller sizeduct. The adapter is reversible so that the smaller duct can be put oneither the left or right hand side of an opening and is configured toprovide for grounding of smaller duct whether on the left or right handposition by the same screws which ground the larger duct.

The design provides that one two-level box and three adapters can beselectively combined so as to provide a box which fits any one of theusual 24 combinations of size, level and position of ducts atintersections. Not only does this save in box inventory per se but saveson engineering, scheduling and fabrication costs. A very big advantageis that the design is readily adaptable for changes during an underfloorinstallation.

The invention will be described in connection with a junction box for atwo-level system and a floor box used primarily in a single levelsystem, the foregoing embodiments being shown in the following drawingswithin:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a two-level junction box constructed inaccordance with the invention and further illustrating an adapter andfeeder and distribution ducts;

FIG. 1a is a sectional elevational view taken on the lines la-la of FIG.1;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the junction box of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a view taken along lines 3-3 of thebox of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a floor box constructed in accordancewith the invention;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the box of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is an elevational view taken along lines 6-6 of FIG. 5; and

FIG. 7 is an elevational view taken along the line 77 of FIG. 5.

In FIG. 1 the two-level junction box 1 has an upper section or body 2and a lower section or body 3. The box is supported on the leveling lugs4. The lower section 3 is adapted to receive feeder ducts such as ducts5 and 6 whereas the upper section 2 is adapted to receive distributionducts such as the ducts l0 and 11. The junction box 1 is hollow andaccess to the interior is provided through the access unit 12 which isof conventional construction.

The upper body 2 has a top wall 13 and a pair of side walls 14 and 15.The top wall 13 has an opening 16 (FIG. 3) providing access to theinterior of the box through the access unit 12.

On the upper body are the upper flanges 20 and 21 which are connected toand extend outwardly from the side walls 14 and 15. The side walls 14and 15 are disposed and spaced from one another so that they formopenings 22 and 23. The openings 22 and 23 are the ends of a channelformed by the top wall 13 and side walls 14 and 15.

The lower body 3 has bottom wall 24 and side walls 25 and 26 togetherwith lower flanges 30 and 31 which are connected to and extend outwardlyfrom the lower side walls. The lower flanges 30 and 31 respectivelyextend across the upper body openings 22 and 23 and form part of thesame.

The lower body side walls 25 and 26 are spaced and disposed so as toform the openings 32 and 33. The upper flanges 21 and 20 respectivelyform part of the openings 32 and 33. The openings 32 and 33 are the endsof a channel formed by bottom 24 and side walls 25 and 26.

The upper openings 22 and 23 and lower openings 32 and 33 are eachidentical in size and are adapted to receive the larger size underfloorduct. To define the innermost position of a connected duct each openingis provided with stop means such as the stop 34 for the opening 22. Theother openings have similar stop means. 7

At each of the four comers of the upper body 2 and on the upper flanges20 and 21 there are threaded holes for accepting the set screws 35 whichsecure and ground a larger size duct in the opening (or adapter as willbe explained later).

In the foregoing description it will be apparent that the upper andlower sections are identical in construction except that the uppersection has the threaded holes for the set screws and an opening fortheaccess unit 12. Thus a single part can be used for both the upper andlower sections of the box with the upper section being slightlymodified. This has substantial advantage as previously indicated.

The manner in which the upper and lower bodies are joined together isimportant feature of the invention and this is explained following.

As will be apparent, the upper and lower bodies interengage through themedium of the engaged flanges at the four corners of the box. Thus theopposite ends of the upper flanges 20 and 21 and the opposite ends ofthe lower flanges 30 and 31 engage each other at each corner. At eachcorner of the box the upper and lower flanges are provided with alignedapertures which receive fasteners 36 rigidly holding the upper and lowerflanges in tight engagement and in addition serving as nuts for theleveling lugs 4. The structure of the fasteners is identical and thedetails are shown in FIG. 3.

The fastener comprises a body 40 which extends through the alignedapertures 41 and 42 in the flanges 21 and 31. A top shoulder 43 engagesthe top flange 21 and a bottom shoulder 44 engages the lower flange 31.The shoulders 43 and 44 are formed so as to tightly press the flanges 21and 31 together. The lower portion 45 of the body 40 is provided withthreads and forms a nut means engaging the threads on the leveling lug4. In assembly, the shoulder 43 is first formed on the fastener body,the fastener inserted in the aligned apertures and then the othershoulder 44 formed by a power-operated hand tool.

It will be understood that the dual function feature of the fastenerenhances cost reduction by effecting savings in inventory and infabrication and assembly costs.

The adapter which conditions the box for use in any combination of ductsat an intersection will next be explained.

As indicated in FIG. 1 the adapter 46 is generally rectangular in shapeand is the same cross-sectional size as the openings 22, etc., so as tobe insertable into an opening up against a stop as shown in FIGS. 2 and3. The adapter has an open-ended socket 47 which is in communicationwith the inside of the box. Adjacent the socket 47 is a barrier 48 whichcloses off the unused portion of the opening and prevents entry ofconcrete during a pour.

The socket 47 is configured to receive the conven tional smaller sizeduct such as duct 11 and thereby converts an opening from a large to asmaller size. The top and bottom of the adapter 46 are provided withsemi-circular cut-out sections 49 and 49a and also with circular cut-outsections 50 and 50a. The cut-out 50 and 50a provide means for lockingthe adapter in the opening and the cut-outs 49 and 49a permit the setscrews to contact the smaller duct and ground the same. For example,when the adapter 46 is in the opening 22 the left hand set screw 35extends down into the circular opening 50 while the right-hand set screw35 extends down through the cut-out 49 to engage the top of the duct 11.The same set screws are used to lock and ground the large duct in anopening.

The adapter configuration described provides that the adapter isreversible in position. This permits the smaller duct 11 to beconnectable on either to the left or right hand side of an opening. Forexample, if the adapter shown in FIG. 1 is turned 180 the socket andbarrier occupy reverse positions and the duct 11 can be connected to theleft hand side of the opening. The set screws 35 will function in thecut-outs 49a and 50a to lock the adapter and ground the duct.

In FIGS. 4 through 7 we have shown the invention as applied to a floorbox.

The floor box comprises an upper body 51, a lower body 52, and issupported by the leveling lugs 53. The upper body 51 has a top wall 54provided with an opening 55 (FIG. 7) to receive the access unit 56.

The upper body has four side walls 60,61,62 and 63 which are disposedand spaced apart from one another to provide upper openings 64,65,66 and67. The upper side walls carry a plurality of upper flanges 68, 69, and71, which extend outwardly from the walls. The top 54 has a plurality ofthreaded apertures 72 carrying the securing and grounding set screws 73.

The lower body 52 is identical in construction except for the accessunit opening and the threaded holes for the grounding set screws. Thelower body includes bottom 74, side walls 75 and flanges 76. The sidewalls are spaced and disposed to form a plurality of openings such asthe openings 77 which are respectively in vertical alignment with theopenings 64-67. The aligned upper and lower openings form an openinginto which can be inserted an adapter 78 or closure 79. The set screws73 hold the adapter and closure member in position and also ground thesame to the box.

The upper flanges 68-71 respectively abut the lower flanges 76 and carryaligned apertures accommodating the fasteners 80. These fasteners areidentical in construction and function to the fasteners of FIG. 1(except that the nut position is above the upper flange) as will beapparent from an inspection of FIG. 6.

We claim:

1. The combination of a junction box and an adapter for a two-levelunderfloor duct system:

a hollow body formed with a pair of rectangularly shaped upper openingsand a pair of rectangularly shaped lower openings, the openings being ofidentical cross-sectional size and the upper openings being for use inreceiving, alternatively, underfloor ducts of the upper level ducts ofthe system or a duct adapter and the lower opening being for use inreceiving, alternatively, underfloor ducts of the lower level ducts ofthe system or a duct adapter;

at each opening, a pair of spaced-apart threaded apertures formed in thebody and being in communication with the opening and set screwsrespectively in the apertures, a screw, when turned down, extending intothe opening; and

an adapter having an open-ended socket and a barrier adjacent thesocket, the adapter being rectangular in shape and said socket beingoff-center with respect to the horizontal center of said rectangularshape to permit said adapter to fit into any of said openings inreversible positions so that in one position the socket is on the lefthand side of the openings and in the reverse position the socket is onthe right hand side of the openings, the socket being for use inreceiving an underfloor duct of smaller size than the size of the ductfitting into the opening without the adapter and the barrier being foruse in closing off the unused part of the opening.

2. A junction box for a two-level underfloor duct system comprising:

a hollow upper body having a top wall and a pair of side walls, the topwall having an opening to provide access to the interior of the box andthe top and side walls forming an upper channel;

a hollow lower body disposed beneath the upper body, the lower bodyhaving a bottom wall and a pair of side walls, the bottom and side wallsforming a lower channel extending substantially at to the upper channel;7

a pair of upper flangesrespectively connected with and extendingoutwardly from the bottom of the upper body side walls, the flangesrespectively extending across the lower channel at opposite endsthereof;

at each end of the lower channel the bottom wall of the lower body, theside walls of the lower body and an upper flange forming an opening, theopenings being identical in size and being for use in receiving,alternatively, an underfloor duct of the upper level ducts of the systemor receiving a duct adapter;

a pair of lower flanges respectively connected with and extendingoutwardly from the top of the lower body side-walls, the lower flangesrespectively extending across opposite ends of the upper channel and theopposite ends of the lower flanges respectively engaging opposite endsof the upper flanges;

at each end of the upper channel the top wall of the upper body, theside walls of the upper body and a lower flange forming an opening, eachopening being the same size as the lower openings and being for use inreceiving, alternatively, an underfloor duct of the lower level ducts ofthe system or receiving a duct adapter;

at each opening, a pair of spaced-apart threaded apertures formed in thebody and being in communication with the opening and set screwsrespectively in the apertures, a screw, when turned down, extending intothe opening;

an adapter having an open-ended socket and a barrier adjacent thesocket, the adapter being rectangular in shape and said socket beingoff-center with respect to the horizontal center of said rectangularshape to permit said adapter to fit into any of said openings inreversible positions so that in one position the socket is on the lefthand side of the openings and in the reverse position the socket is onthe right hand side of the openings, the socket being for use inreceiving an underfloor duct of smaller size than the size of the ductfitting into the opening without the adapter and the barrier being foruse in closing off the unused part of the opening and the socket havingcut-out sections to accommodate said set screws whereby the samecontacts a duct in the socket to ground the same; a plurality of alignedapertures respectively formed in the engaged sections of the upper andlower flanges;

plurality of fasteners respectively extending through the alignedapertures, each fastener having means for holding the upper and lowerflanges in tight engagement and further having means supporting aleveling lug for use in adjusting the box in the vertical direction; andplurality of leveling lugs respectively mounted in last said means.

1. The combination of a junction box and an adapter for a twolevelunderfloor duct system: a hollow body formed with a pair ofrectangularly shaped upper openings and a pair of rectangularly shapedlower openings, the openings being of identical cross-sectional size andthe upper openings being for use in receiving, alternatively, underfloorducts of the upper level ducts of the system or a duct adapter and thelower opening being for use in receiving, alternatively, underfloorducts of the lower level ducts of the system or a duct adapter; at eachopening, a pair of spaced-apart threaded apertures formed in the bodyand being in communication with the opening and set screws respectivelyin the apertures, a screw, when turned down, extending into the opening;and an adapter having an open-ended socket and a barrier adjacent thesocket, the adapter being rectangular in shape and said socket beingoff-center with respect to the horizontal center of said rectangularshape to permit said adapter to fit into any of said openings inreversible positions so that in one position the socket is on the lefthand side of the openings and in the reverse position the socket is onthe right hand side of the openings, the socket being for use inreceiving an underfloor duct of smaller size than the size of the ductfitting into the opening without the adapter and the barrier being foruse in closing off the unused part of the opening.
 2. A junction box fora two-level underfloor duct system comprising: a hollow upper bodyhaving a top wall and a pair of side walls, the top wall having anopening to provide access to the interior of the box and the top andside walls forming an upper channel; a hollow lower body disposedbeneath the upper body, the lower body having a bottom wall and a pairof side walls, the bottom and side walls forming a lower channelextending substantially at 90* to the upper channel; a pair of upperflanges respectively connected with and extending outwardly from thebottom of the upper body side walls, the flanges respectively extendingacross the lower channel at opposite ends thereof; at each end of thelower channel the bottom wall of the lower body, the side walls of thelower body and an upper flange forming an opening, the openings beingidentical in size and being for use in receiving, alternatively, anunderfloor duct of the upper level ducts of the system or receiving aduct adapter; a pair of lower flanges respectively connected with andextending outwardly from the top of the lower body side-walls, the lowerflanges respectively extending across opposite ends of the upper channeland the opposite ends of the lower flanges respectively engagingopposite ends of the upper flanges; at each end of the upper channel thetop wall of the upper body, the side walls of the upper body and a lowerflange forming an opening, each opening being the same size as the loweropenings and being for use in receiving, alternatively, an underfloorduct of the lower level ducts of the system or receiving a duct adapter;at each opening, a pair of spaced-apart threaded apertures formed in thebody and being in communication with the opening and set screwsrespectively in the apertures, a screw, when turned down, extending intothe opening; an adapter having an open-ended socket and a barrieradjacent the socket, the adapter being rectangular in shape and saidsocket being off-center with respect to the horizontal center of saidrectangular shape to permit said adapter to fit into any of saidopenings in reversible positions so that in one position the socket ison the left hand side of the openings and in the reverse position thesocket is on the right hand side of the openings, the socket being foruse in receiving an underfloor duct of smaller size than the size of theduct fitting into the opening without the adapter and the barrier beingfor use in closing off the unused part of the opening and the sockethaving cut-out sections to accommodate said set screws whereby the samecontacts a duct in the socket to ground the same; a plurality of alignedapertures respectively formed in the engaged sections of the upper andlower flanges; a plurality of fasteners respectively extending throughthe aligned apertures, each fastener having means for holding the upperand lower flanges in tight engagement and further having meanssupporting a leveling lug for use in adjusting the box in the verticaldirection; and a plurality of leveling lugs respectively mounted in lastsaid means.